


To Walk in the Sun

by holystrawberry



Category: Twilight Series - All Media Types, Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Alternate Universe - 1990s, Alternate Universe - College/University, F/F, Gen, Twilight Reimagined, Twilight Renaissance, also probably a mixed scattering of twilight and life and death characters bc. i want to, theres going to be several departures from canon in terms of backstory bc i want to have some fun
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-09
Updated: 2020-05-30
Packaged: 2020-06-25 04:57:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,627
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19738774
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/holystrawberry/pseuds/holystrawberry
Summary: Basically a loose reimagining of Twilight where Bella transfers to a university in Tacoma and meets a strange pale girl in one of her literature classes and starts noticing unusual things around campus. Bella is in denial about being gay and her best friend is a stuffed animal. Edythe has bad social skills.





	1. The Fortunate Ones

**Author's Note:**

> This is a bit short and I have more I'm still working on but it's my first time posting anything and I'm getting antsy. Inspired by this post https://shes-a-wolf-in-disguise.tumblr.com/post/184630828164/twilight-au-where-bella-and-edythe-meet-at

September 5, 1992

When I crossed the border into Washington it started to rain. Within a few minutes it was absolutely pouring. Droplets streamed down the windshield of my car, my wipers weakly waving back and forth in a futile attempt to maintain visibility. I slowed and endeavored on cautiously for a few minutes longer, but soon the rain was too heavy for me to see anything, even with my fog lights desperately blazing ahead, and I had to stop. The heavy rainfall on my roof made me shiver, and I was grateful that my mom insisted that I replace my steadfast but leaky truck before I left the state.

I was glad for the excuse to pull over. I'd been on the road since I had woken up, well over five hours before I crossed the state line and found myself in the immediate deluge of the Evergreen state. I was nearing the end of my journey. As ready as I was to be somewhere that I could stretch my legs, in some ways I was dreading what lay before me. I had never been this far from my hometown before, and I hadn't even thought about trying to make new friends since I was twelve.

When I finished up at my community college, I could have gone anywhere. I had several transfer opportunities, all within a two hour drive of my childhood home in Phoenix. But I had chosen instead to continue my higher education at a small private university on the outskirts of Tacoma. I glanced over at the road map in the passenger seat held open by Ducky, my long-suffering stuffed animal I'd had since childhood. Puget Sound University. My destination, the culmination of three days of driving and two nights of seedy-looking but clean motels. Absolutely impractical for anyone from home to visit on a whim. Anyone who wanted to see me would have to call ahead and give me the chance to make up an excuse for them not to come. With any luck, I wouldn't see any of my friends until the following summer. Possibly not even then.

My vision blurred and I blinked, surprised to find that my eyes were wet. Thinking about home had become even more painful on the drive here. It barely felt like my home anymore when I had been there, but now that I had left all my memories turned to sharp barbs of regrets. My friends were barely there anymore, but somehow my leaving felt like the final nail in the coffin of our collective girlhood.

Without even thinking about it, my hand reached for the old polaroid taped above the vents for my car's air conditioning system. Two friends and I stood on white sand in front of the Pacific Ocean. It had been a fun day. We had taken the 6 hour drive from Phoenix to the California coast and stood agape at the expanse of ocean for longer than any of us expected. We ate at a diner on the end of the pier and slept in the bed of my old truck. It was the last time all three of us were in the same place. The next week Gracie left for Colorado. Natalie and I stayed in town, but conflicting schedules and her new boyfriend meant that we saw each other rarely.

I pulled the photo off the dashboard. When Gracie visited the next summer, she was in town for three full weeks before I found out. We saw a movie together and went for ice cream and she went back to Colorado before the month was out.

Our younger eyes seemed to taunt me from their safe prison of the photo. I felt a sudden surge of anger at all of us. Quickly, I opened my glove box and shut the photo inside.

The downpour had dwindled to a moderate drizzle, so I rolled down my window to let the hissing of the rain on the highway drown out my thoughts before they coalesced into panic that I was making a terrible choice. The wind was mercifully blowing the rain away from the window, but a few stray drops still found their way in. 

As I wiped away tears and raindrops alike, I thought about all the things that rain was supposed to symbolize. Washing away the old. Watering the seeds of the new. Purification. Wetness. I shivered, trying to imagine what it would be like to be a local and accustomed to this kind of cold. I resolved to keep my windows open in my dormitory as often as possible to get used to it more quickly.

The rain was even more gentle now, the green pines beginning to emerge from the blanket of mist that lay across the land. It was time to move on.

"Into the glorious future," I sighed aloud, restarting my engine. As I pulled back onto the road I glanced down at the now empty spot above my vents where one lonely piece of scotch tape now lay flat. And I told myself I wasn't bothered at all.


	2. The Fortunate Ones - continued

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bella arrives at the university and takes in the sights.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took way longer than I wanted it to- mostly because I kept getting distracted writing scenes that won't happen until Edythe shows up and making a functioning timetable of Bella's classes for no reason. Anyway I hope you enjoy it and I'll try to get the next chapter out in a more timely fashion!

The rain had stopped by the time I arrived in Tacoma, four hours after I crossed into the state. Driving through such wet city streets was strange to me, I felt almost uneasy at the noted lack of panic in the air. Back in Phoenix, with its eight inches of average rainfall a year, drizzle like this would result in multiple collisions before the day was out.

I had to pull over twice while I was in the city. Once to get gas and check my map to find the university, and once to check the letter from the university that told me where I actually needed to go. The university itself was easy to find. The specific road that led to the parking garage for the dormitories, less so. 

A short drive down a few quiet streets later, I pulled into a parking spot in the designated garage. I let my head rest on the steering wheel for a long moment. Three days ago, I had hugged my mother goodbye. Today I was here. It was time for my new life to actually begin. I sat in my car for a few more minutes, mentally preparing myself for my first actual conversation in over three days. I hadn't come early enough to make it to the transfer student orientation, so the residence hall coordinator was expecting me personally. With any luck it would be a quick and painless exchange. I sighed again. Stuffing Ducky into my most strategically-packed duffel bag, I surrendered to fate and got out of the car. 

Once outside the parking structure, I was stopped dead in my tracks by the sight before me. The campus was green, greener than anywhere else I had ever been. Greener by far than anywhere in Arizona. My trip had taken me past many different kinds of terrain, and somewhere around Idaho that same green had started to bleed into the scenery that flew past the dusty windows of my car, but it was not until I stepped out that I truly understood how vibrant the green actually was.

I began to walk slowly as I took it all in. The grass, the trees, even the air itself smelled green. Green like the moss I would add to every drawing of a tree that I made until I was eleven, and realized that I had never actually seen moss in real life before, and certainly wasn't going to find on the cactus in my front yard. For that matter, I had never seen so many trees in one place before. Pines and hemlocks dotted the gentle crests of the hills. Spruces and birches nestled close to the warm brown bricks of the campus buildings. All were trees that I had heard of and seen before in films and books, but had never stood near enough to touch. A broad aspen stood at a lean just off of the walkway. I allowed myself a moment to step off the path and brush my fingers against the damp bark. At the same moment, a lingering raindrop on one of the leaves above decided that it was done hanging on, and fell with a plop down the back of my shirt, sending me leaping back onto the path. 

The administration building was only the third building down the path. The door for the residence hall administration office was just inside the cozy lobby was. I braced myself for small talk and went in. But when I opened the door, I was greeted by the back of man's head seated behind the desk.

It seemed that I had caught the residence hall coordinator in the middle of a very important phone call. He turned to me and stopped long enough to ask my name and push an overstuffed manila folder into my arms. With an apologetic look he waved me back out the door while pointing insistently to the left and mouthing the words "Brantley Hall" at me. It wasn't the most professional or reassuring encounter of my life, but part of me was grateful for not having to answer any questions.

Back outside the building I flipped through the contents of the folder. It was a welcome packet- mostly forms for me to fill out and return at my earliest convenience, alongside a few flyers informing me of social and academic opportunities for transfer students. Two items in particular caught my attention. A shiny, laminated parking pass gleamed up at me. Behind it sat a printed timetable of my class schedule for the semester. Despite all my apprehension about this self-imposed exile, I felt a tingle of excitement as I read through the class titles. This was a good school, and I was very lucky to be here. The parking pass was a small but official signifier of my status. I had a place here. On paper, at least, I belonged.

My mood brightened a bit, I shoved the folder into a pocket on my duffel and continued down the path in the direction the coordinator had pointed. The path led out onto an open area between three buildings. The nearest one had the words "Brantley Hall" displayed above the entrance. Through the glass doors I could see a blonde girl in a pink sweater sitting behind a desk and filing her nails. I doubted that I would get through this next interaction without making at least some small talk. I prepared my best casual smile and opened the door. The blonde girl's head snapped up in response and she mirrored my smile.

"Welcome to Brantley Hall! You must be Isabella Swan?" she asked as she stood up and walked around to the front of the desk. 

"Oh, just Bella, please," I grimaced, "But yes, I am."

"It's nice to meet you Bella," her smile was wide and sincere, and she reached out to shake my hand, "I'm McKayla. I'm currently on front desk duty, as you can see, but I'm also going to be your Resident Advisor up on the fourth floor."

"It's nice to meet you too," I smiled back.

"So, I bet you want to see where it is that you're going to be living. I can take you up to your room now," she said, grabbing a key ring from the desk before leading me down the hallway. "How was your trip in today?"

"Well, I drove here from Phoenix, so scenic but long probably sums it up best," I answered as I followed her around a corner.

"Oh goodness! I imagine that you're pretty excited to be in an actual building and about to be shown a room with a bed in it" she laughed, tucking a strand of her corn silk hair behind her ear as she held the stairwell door open for me.

She led me up three flights of stairs, asking me questions about the drive and life in Phoenix. She was from Southern California originally, and curious about my thoughts on the difference in weather.

She came to a stop in front of a room- my room, of my very own- at the end of the fourth-floor hall. I found myself holding my breath as she turned the key in the lock. The door opened in with a click and I stepped inside my room. It was smaller than I'd hoped, but still bigger than I had feared. 

"So here is your room, and here is your room key," she said, handing it to me, "Now, shall we get started moving stuff up here from your car?"

"Oh, no, that's okay. I'll probably leave most of that for tomorrow," I replied. I didn't feel like explaining that unpacking my car was sure to be an emotional as well as physical undertaking, and one that was best completed alone.

"Oh, are you sure?" she looked like she didn't know whether to be concerned or relieved.

"It's fine, I think my car and I need a break from each other for the rest of the day. But, thank you, I really appreciate it," I tried unconvincingly to sound nonchalant.

"Well, if you're sure," she said hesitantly, as she started to turn back down the hallway. "Oh, before I forget, there's going to be a floor meeting tomorrow evening at six. We're just going to go over Brantley's policies and then walk to the Chinese place just off campus for dinner. The meeting is pretty much mandatory and the dinner is encouraged."

"Okay, that sounds great," I lied. My stomach was already churning at the idea of the obligatory socializing. I wondered if it would be possible for me to slink back to my room after the meeting without anyone noticing.

"Well, I'll leave you to get settled," said McKayla, "It's been so nice to meet you, Bella. Please let me know if you need anything at all. My room is just down the hall. I'm glad you'll be joining us this year."

The door shut behind her with a click, and I was alone again. The silence of the empty room was almost deafening after the constant rumble of highways and the recent conversation. Tossing my bag onto the bed, I walked over to the window. Outside, I could see that dusk was nearing, and a light mist had started to fall again. I fumbled in the dimming light for the window lock, managing to get it open but pinching my finger in the process. As I squeezed the pink skin, a chill blew in, sending a shiver down my spine. I took a deep breath, tasting the damp, green perfume of the pine trees. It was all so different from the dusty dryness of my Arizona bedroom. How long would it take to get used to the wetness in the air? 

I don't know how long I stood at the window in the growing darkness, but a door slamming down the hall reminded me of the immediate practicalities of my reality. Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I found my way to the light switch and flicked it on. The harsh fluorescent lights weren't exactly cozy, but they illuminated the small room well enough. The bed was taller than any that I'd ever had, the mattress dimpled with time but surprisingly springy when tested. In the corner by the window was a compact desk with a built-in lamp, paired with an equally compact desk chair.

I unpacked the minimal contents of my duffel bag. Ducky, along with my toiletries and change of clothes fit easily on the desk while I wrestled my bedsheets onto the bed. My first order of business was to call my mom and let her know that I had made it in one piece, but I found myself sitting on the edge of the bed, my eyelids heavy. It couldn't hurt to lie down for a moment. After all, I deserved a moment of rest, I had just driven for three days straight. I lay back, surrendering almost immediately to the urge to shut my eyes. I would rest my eyes for a moment, just a moment, and then see about calling my mom.


	3. The Fortunate Ones - continued

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bella ventures out of her room

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's been ages!! sorry this was so long in coming and also so dreadfully short that im not even sure you can call it a chapter! school started back up and its been rough but i wanted to post at least a little something. i cant promise that the next update will be soon but it will happen!!

A chill from the open window pulled me from my sleep into a room flooded with eastern sunlight. With shallow breaths in my chest I sat up in the small bed. I had kicked off one of my boots in the night, an impressive feat considering how tightly I kept them laced. The ceiling light was redundant in the bright morning, and I quickly jumped up to guiltily flip the switch off. How had I managed to sleep through the whole night under those harsh lights? 

I paused then, to see my room in full daylight. My room. I whispered the words aloud, to see how they felt in my mouth. I was struggling to connect the space around me to any concept of home. With its bare walls and sterile It felt like more a strange vacation stopover than anything else. I would have to bring most of my stuff up here today. I had plenty of posters I could hang, maybe that would bring some semblance of familiarity to the sterile while walls. I smiled then, imagining how my mementos of home would fit in here. My room back in Phoenix was covered in memories in all forms, from photographs and ticket stubs to more unconventional souvenirs like the sandy, naked Barbie doll that I found with my friends during one of our trips out in the Sonoran Desert. Over a thousand miles away, and years ago. I felt my smile slowly slip off my face. 

Home. Mom! I had fallen asleep without calling her. She must be worried sick. I quickly made my bed and changed into my extra clothes. Grabbing my toiletry kit and my keys- it would be just my luck to get locked out of my room the first time I left it- I made my way out of my room and down the hall to where McKayla had pointed out the floor bathrooms. I wasn't looking forward to the communal bathroom part of the college experience, but there wasn't much I could do about that. Fortunately, it seemed to be empty. I didn't know what time it was but clearly it was too early for anyone else to be roaming around on a Saturday morning.

I washed my face and brushed my teeth quickly, and was surprised to find that the tap water tasted sweet, and not nearly as metallic as the water back home. I gave my face another splash and looked up at the long mirror above the sink, watching the water drip down my skin. Back in Phoenix, I always felt a little bit guilty whenever I used more water than I needed, it came from living in a desert. But here, the amount of water I had already seen falling from the sky in the past day alone made me feel almost giddy. I watched a slow grin spread across my face, and turned the tap back on, slipping my hands back under the tap to watch the water run through my fingers.

A sudden rustling of plastic sounded behind me and I whipped around, face still dripping, to see a towel-clad McKayla emerge from one of the shower stalls, pushing aside the dingy vinyl curtain and shaking water out of her ear. She took a half-step forward and squinted at me.

"Hey there, whoever you are, I haven't put my contacts in yet, but I'm hoping we've already met if you're in this bathroom," she said as she reached down to pick up a faded pink shower caddy.

"It's Bella," I faltered out, hastily reaching back to turn off the faucet.

"Ah, Bella!" McKayla's eyebrows shot toward her hairline and the corners of her mouth followed them upwards, "I hope you're settling in well."

"Yeah, it's going great," I forced a smile that she wouldn't have been able to see, "Oh, but I did want to about using a phone?"

At this, McKayla's eyes practically popped out of their sockets, and she launched into a tirade about how Brantley had phones in every room, but had taken them out for maintenance and how could they expect any of the RAs to run a floor with just the communal phone and to not even get her started on how ridiculous that a school with so much money could be so lackadaisical about the needs of the students. I was just beginning to feel sorry that I asked, when she paused and let out one long exhale.

"Sorry," she grimaced, "Sometimes this school gets on my nerves, but I suppose it comes with job. We do have a few payphones around. There's one just outside the dining hall across the way, and another further down towards the Green- the big quad area in front of the four main lecture halls. You just go right from the door and follow the path, you should come across it pretty quickly."

I thanked her, and fiddled with zipper of my toiletry bag, unsure of the social rules governing RA to resident interactions.  
"Will you come to the dinner tonight? There's gonna be fried rice," McKayla said in a sing-song voice.

"Oh, I'm not sure," I began. Truthfully I had already put the question out of my mind. It would be smart to go, and get a feel for the other habitants of the floor. If the stars aligned, I might even make friends. None of this had pushed me any nearer to attending. 

"Well I hope you're able to make it, it's always good to start getting involved as soon as possible," she gave me a heartfelt smile, as she left the bathroom, and I didn't doubt the sincerity of her words. 

Alone in the silence, I turned back to the mirror, to see the soft collar of my grey shirt patterned darkly with droplets that had fallen from my face, and was grateful that McKayla hadn't been able to see me clearly.


	4. when you gonna live your life right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im back!! college is over for me now so its time to project all my memories and regrets onto this AU lets gooooo

My toiletries safely secured back in my room and my coin purse in tow, I made my way back out to the front of the building. By this point in the morning, a decent number of other students were out roaming the halls, chatting with each other. A few of them tried to make eye contact and wave, and I did my best impression of a smile and tried to look like I was in a hurry.  
I found the phone booth outside the dining hall straight away, and quickly plonked my quarters into the slot. I heard my mom pick up the phone on the first ring.

  
"Hey, mom. I can't talk for very long, I'm calling from a payphone," I started, "I just wanted to let you know that I made it to my dorm, no problems. I fell asleep as soon as I got in. I still have to bring everything up from my car."

  
"Oh, sweetie, I was so worried! I barely slept at all, your step-father said he could hear me grinding my teeth the whole night," my mom's voice, high and thin, was filled with relief.

"I'm fine mom, just tired from the drive," I yawned in earnest, then proceeded to reassure her about the smoothness of my travels and the upcoming floor meeting. My mom chattered for a bit about the new neighbors and their little dog before I gently reminded her that I only had a limited number of quarters.

"Before you go, did you call your father yet?" my mom asked, "I know that you hadn't decided when you left, have you given it any more thought?"

"I haven't yet, I-" I paused, my mind drawing a blank like it always did when my father was mentioned, "I still haven't decided."

"Well, it's up to you sweetheart, but I don't think you should wait too long if you do decide to reach out," she said, in her best attempt to sound authoritative.

"I just want to keep thinking about it for a bit longer, I'll decide after I've settled in," I said. Liar. The question of whether or not to tell my estranged father where I would be living for the next few years had been the focus of many conversations between myself and my mother ever since I had started applying to colleges. In spite of the fact that I was wearing one of the Iron Maiden shirts he sent me yearly for my birthday, it was a subject I would immediately purge from my mind as soon as the conversation ended. It was not something I ever wanted to think about for any amount of time.

"Okay sweetie," my mom said with a sigh, "Have a good day. I hope moving all your boxes goes smoothly and you make many friends tonight. I love you very much. Please call again soon."

"Thanks mom, I love you too. I will, I promise," I waited for her to get through her goodbyes and I hung up.

Shaking my head, I made my way down back to the main path and set off in the direction of the parking garage, hoping it would be easy to find in the light of day. Yesterday afternoon had been grey, but in the sunlight of the bright morning the green of the trees was even more staggering. Emerald light filtered down through the canopy of leaves that sheltered the long walkway back to the parking garage.

I remained so captivated by these vibrant colors that I had nearly forgotten my purpose by the time I found my way back to my car and opened the rear hatch. I pulled out a tightly packed wicker basket, grateful to see that it hadn't taken any damage during the journey. Gracie and I had taken a basket-weaving class together during our first year of community college. It was the only class that we'd managed to take together. I set the basket down on the cold cement, a bit harder than I needed to. I busied myself with strategizing which boxes I should take first. When I'd packed my car back in Phoenix, it had only taken me four trips to get everything out from my room. But that had been a one-story house, not a fourth-floor dorm room. For a moment, I debated going back inside and asking McKayla for her help. But I suspected that doing so might very well lead to conversations and questions about the items in my car and I hadn't been able to tell yet whether or not McKayla would be the kind of person I would want to give answers to. I resigned myself to today being a day of manual labor and set to work.

All in all, it took me seven trips to get all my stuff up to my room. I made a mental note to get friendly with a few people on my floor by the end of the year to save myself some back strain when I eventually had to move out. It had seemed like quite a lot when it had all been packed into my car, but seeing all my belongings fit so neatly in one corner of my room really brought home how little I actually had. The majority of what I had was my clothes, which didn't take me long to put away in the skinny closet. The rest were mostly school supplies and mementos that would take a lot more mental effort to sort through and organize.

The physical toll of the drive and the effort of moving was starting to creep up on me, so I pulled my tape player out of its box and thumbed through my cassette collection. I settled on something folksy and a bit melancholic and laid back on my bed, pulling Ducky close. I had the rest of the day to rest before submitting myself to the ordeal of interacting with the people who were to be my neighbors for the next nine months. I sighed, told myself it wouldn't be that bad, and let the music wash over me.

~~~

The floor meeting ended up being less painful than I'd been expecting. We went around the circle and introduced ourselves briefly. Ice breakers like this had never been my strong suit, but fortunately we only had to answer basic questions about ourselves, and we weren't asked to come up with any fun facts or catchphrases on the spot.

The rest of the floor was all girls, although the building itself was co-ed. I was slightly dismayed to learn that I was the oldest person on the fourth floor. With the exception of the soft-spoken girl sitting on my right, every other resident was either nineteen or twenty. I didn't mind being around people a few years younger than me on their own, but in large groups I always found myself being slowly pushed out of the circle. It never felt intentional, I just wasn't quite able to keep up with them.

McKayla and the other RA, Lauren, went over the dorm rules, a bit tediously but efficiently. They were what I expected, more or less. No alcohol, no noise after 10pm, no trash in the halls, and so on.

I wasn't concerned about my ability to keep to these rules. Although, ever since I had turned 21, I had lived with the constant worry that the younger students would ask me to buy alcohol for them. It was a mostly unfounded worry as it had yet to happen. In fact, I had yet to put myself in any situation where I was close enough with any of my classmates that they felt comfortable enough asking me for anything outside of lending them the notes they missed. The worry came more from my uncertainty about which would win out: my unrelenting need to uphold the rules at any given time, or my undeniable desire for people to like me.

"Okay, everyone! That about wraps it up, we don't want to keep you here too much longer, I know my stomach's starting to rumble. We'll be heading out from here in about ten minutes, so grab whatever you need and be back here soon!" McKayla announced at the end of the list of rules. Most of the floor stayed right where they were, already having prepared for the trip out. I carefully avoided McKayla's searching gaze as I made my way to door. I caught a glimpse of the quiet girl- Angela, if I remembered correctly- looking after me in curiosity.  
Once back inside my room, I allowed myself to breathe a heavy sigh. McKayla was probably right that it would be a good to start trying to make friends soon, or at least be sociable. And I probably was just choosing to continue to follow my old patterns by staying in. But I really was tired, both from the long drive and from carrying all my worldly possessions up the stairs all day. Besides, all those younger kids probably wouldn't be interested in talking to me much anyway. Even if they did, could I really hold their attention long enough for any friendships to come of it?

A cool breeze swept in through the open window and I shivered. I was definitely making a bad choice, but it was one I was familiar with, having practiced it many times during my previous years at community college. There would always be another group event that I would be invited to. And subsequently blow off for no good reason. This thought sent another shiver down my spine, but only tightened my chest and increased my resolve to stay in.

As the wave of loneliness and resignation crashed over me, I turned to shut the window, suddenly missing the heat of Phoenix more that I had expected to. I looked out, then I stopped in my tracks. Outside my window, against the edge of the pine grove that marked the edge of the school, was a tall dark figure. Its general shape was vaguely humanoid, and it was too far away to be sure, but I could have sworn it was much too tall and thin to actually be a person. That was hardly the least of its strangeness, however. A thin fuzzy halo of dark light pulsed around its edges. It was glowing. Softly, faintly, but most definitely glowing. It seemed to be turning, slowly, towards the trees, reaching one long and spindly leg out and then- it was gone. Not disappeared into the trees, just gone.

I slammed my window shut. It was nothing, probably. Just a trick of the fading the light, surely that's all it was. My hands on the sill shook. I looked down at the goosebumps covering my arms. My exhaustion had evaporated the second the figure had started to move. A chorus of laughter erupted from down the hall. Maybe I didn't want to be alone tonight after all. I grabbed a jacket and my keys before racing down the hall back to the group, doing my best to walk at the pace of a person who wasn't half scared out of their wits. The floor meeting group had slowly wandered closer to the stairwell. McKayla saw me coming down the hall and waved, and Angela sent me a small smile. I took a deep breath and returned both, reflecting that maybe there were some unknowns that were less scary than others.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bella is listening to indigo girls in this chapter. also have i ever actually used a payphone? was i even alive during the first half of the nineties? perhaps not! but will i let that stop me from indulging in shameless nostalgic yearnings? again, no.  
> anyway thanks for reading!! ive actually had most of the next chapter written for ages its when we finally meet edythe!! so expect that soon


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